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30 Jul: Sunday ride to Newmarket and West Stow

John R writes: It was to be another windy and cloudy day, part and parcel of British school holidays!

Joining me at Brookside for today's ride were Greg, Paul D, Rupert, Sheila and Ray. We had lost a few of our regular riders – Alex, Nigel and John S – to the toils and ordeals of the 1400km LEL ride.

Brookside

We were heading to the Racehorse Museum cafes at Newmarket so we set off via one of our usual routes along Hills Road onto Worts Causeway and on through Fulbourn, the Wilbrahams and down to Six Mile Bottom. Crossing the A11 we hit the undulations on the Brinkley Road before turning first left along Balsham Lane. We then put in a short loop by way of Dullingham and Woodditton before riding through the Crockfords Park housing estate and to our café stop at the Racehorse Museum. Here as usual we met several other club riders who had made their own way to coffee. The weather was warm enough to sit outside so we tucked into a variety of coffees, pain au raisins and sausage rolls.

Newmarket

Moving away just after 11.30am were myself, Greg, Ray, Sheila, Edmund, Keith, Andy and Sarah. We cycled past the Gallops leaving Newmarket and on toward Moulton. Then we found ourselves part following one of Nick Wilkinson's brilliant permanent audax routes through lovely Suffolk countryside via Gazeley, Barrow, Burthorpe, Risby and Flempton before finally arriving at West Stow Country Park at 1pm for lunch. As usual we found that Adrian had taken a quicker route and was already tucking into his food.

West Stow

West Stow

The weather forecast had not been looking too good for the afternoon and we knew that we would be cycling back into the wind so we set off back just after 1.30pm.

Hard work cycling into the wind as any rider knows so we just put our collective heads down and rode on through Cavenham, Tuddenham, Kennett before crossing the A11 into Chippenham. From here it was the usual route back from another of our favourite stops at La Hogue – so Snailwell, Exning, Reach, Swaffham Prior (can anyone tell me why there are two churches on the same site here), Swaffham Bulbeck and Bottisham. Then it's the pleasant ride on the cycleway alongside Newwmarket Road into Quy then a short hop through Fen Ditton, across the meadows and back into town alongside the river.